The DVD Journal: The Jackal and The Day of the Jackal Back to Quick Reviews Frederick Forsythe, master storyteller and suspense-novelist, retired in 1997, and that was a damn shame. Since 1971, Forsythe has fabricated some of the best intrigue and espionage novels in the world, and many of his books have become films, among them The Odessa File, The Dogs of War, and The Fourth Protocol. Perhaps best-known of his novels is his first, The Day of the Jackal, a work that was so overwhelming in its craft and detail that he was immediately compared to John Le Carre, the preeminent spy novelist of the day. I first saw Fred Zinneman's The Day of the Jackal many years ago, and was so spellbound that I immediately bought the book. The book made such a further impression upon me that I have now read every one of Forsythe's novels, and most more than once. I was saddened when he announced his retirement, because his skill as a storyteller, his ability to describe locales around the world in the finest particulars, and his use of red herrings and plot twists, have given me hours and hours of pleasure.

So when a studio decides to make another version of The Day of the Jackal, which to them always means "improving" the original work or "updating it for the '90s," there's no way I can let it go without a few comments. This particular tale of an enigmatic assassin who agrees to take one last job  the murder of Charles De Gaulle  is one of the best suspense novels ever written, and Fred Zinneman's 1973 film, with the screenplay by Kenneth Ross, is the most faithful adaptation of any novel that I know. The 1997 version? Well, I'm sure you know where I'm going with this. But you can read along anyway. * * * In the early 1960s, Charles De Gaulle  war hero, leader of the French Resistance, and then-president of France  did something a little controversial. He decided to give up Algeria. While this political decision was entirely in keeping with post-colonial Europe's desire to rid themselves of their costly African colonies, some members of the French military were outraged. After all, hadn't they fought for Algeria, occupied Algeria, paid with their own lives in Algeria?

Why would they sacrifice so much if De Gaulle was simply going to give it up? One faction of the Army that was particularly opposed to the Algerian policy  and opposed to De Gaulle in general  went underground, calling themselves the OAS (Organisation Armee Secret). War heroes and patriots turned bank robbers and seditionists, they took great pains to conceal themselves while waging a low-grade terrorist campaign against the French government. However, they did not regard themselves as criminals. They saw themselves as the true moral voice of France. As is was, the conflict between the OAS and France's Action Service, the military wing of the French Secret Service (SDECE, or Service de Documentation Exterieure et de Contre-Espionage), wore on  quietly perhaps, but regularly. On the evening of 22 August 1962, one Lieutenant Colonel Jean-Marie Bastien-Thiry led a cell of OAS operatives on a mission to assassinate De Gaulle as his motorcade passed through the streets of Paris. While many shots were fired, De Gaulle just missed being hit, and Bastien-Thiry was captured.

Convinced that no member of the French Army would raise his rifle against him, he willingly stood before the firing squad. It was 6:40 a.m. on 11 March 1963, and he was wrong. After the execution of Lt. Col. Bastien-Thiry, pressure from the Action Service increased against the OAS, the organization became riddled with moles, and OAS leaders were forced into hiding outside of France. Frederick Forsythe's novel The Day of the Jackal, and the 1973 film adaptation, uses this non-fictional account of recent French history as a springboard into a fictional inquiry: What would the leaders of the OAS do, knowing that they could not come out from hiding, nor mount an operation for fear of leaks, if they were still committed to seizing control of France? Forsythe came up with an interesting premise: They would hire an assassin to kill Charles De Gaulle. Not a patriot, not a man who would kill for God and Country, but a professional. They would seek out and hire the man known only as "The Jackal" and give him what he wanted  a lot of money.

1973's The Day of the Jackal stars Edward Fox as the cold-blooded killer, and features an international cast and location shoots throughout England, France, and Italy. As The Jackal, Fox strikes just the right note. At no time during the story does he let his guard down. The Jackal cares only about one thing  the $500,000 he will be paid for completing his mission. Because of this, The Jackal is a cipher, a man of disguise and deception who presents himself as a flesh-and-blood human being to all he meets, but never allows them (or us, the viewers) to know who he is or what makes him tick. He is skilled, he operates without remorse, and because of his ability to compartmentalize his emotions, he's extremely dangerous. The Day of the Jackal wouldn't be the crack story it is however if our assassin had no adversary. That role is left to Michel Lonsdale as Detective Claude Lebel. When The Jackal's mission is inevitably leaked to the authorities, Det. Lebel is given the job to find the man  a man with no face, no name, and no known whereabouts.

We are told by a government minister that Lebel is the best investigator in France, but like The Jackal, his appearance belies his ability. If The Jackal uses his suave English demeanor to hide his ruthless profession, Lebel's own unassuming and somewhat timid personality causes most of the ministers in De Gaulle's cabinet to underestimate him. But, when given his assignment, Lebel is relentless, and he is not afraid to act outside of the cabinet's authority when such tactics are necessary. The Day of the Jackal, is great fun to watch, and it pulls off a neat trick by making the adversaries equally sympathetic. We admire The Jackal for his professionalism, his foresight, and his ability to use his wits when he is on the run. But we also admire the put-upon Lebel, working for the De Gaulle cabinet with little possibility for reward or recognition, because, unlike the government's pencil-pushing civil servants, it is this humble detective who succeeds in finding the most elusive man in the world, identifying him, and trailing him throughout France.

If there is any antagonist in the film, it is the members of De Gaulle's cabinet, all of whom play a neat game of "cover your ass" when it looks like The Jackal may escape them. But don't plan on disliking the cat or this mouse in this movie. One man will have to win the game, but like any good contest, the real fun is watching it happen. * * * I wanted to watch 1997's The Jackalwith an open mind, although I readily admit that such probably is not possible. After all, the working title for the 1997 film was, indeed, The Day of the Jackal, but this was met with vociferous protest from Fred Zinneman, Kenneth Ross, and Mr. Forsythe himself. The producers of The Jackal claimed that they were adapting the Ross' screenplay and not the Forsythe novel (ludicrous, at best), but they eventually relented and chose the now-abbreviated title.

But instead of simply siding with the creators of the original Jackal, I will illustrate a point about Michael Caton-Jones' movie: A key part of Zinneman'sThe Day of the Jackal involves the assassin's need to get some sort of sniper's rifle across the French border. With his intention to travel as a tourist, and all of the checkpoints heavily guarded, he decides that the rifle will need to be small, custom-made, easily disguised, and able to break down into sections. When The Jackal enters France, the weapon is cleverly concealed. It also only holds one round (because he doesn't feel more than one shot will be possible anyway) and barely looks like a weapon. It's smart and sleek, but certainly not the sort of thing that teenage boys might construe as a transposed Freudian phallus. Bruce Willis stars as the assassin in The Jackal, so we can safely rule out upper-crust English charm right away. And don't bother looking for the rifle, because it is nowhere to be seen. Instead, Willis has a gatling gun. Essentially it's a cannon mounted on the back of truck.

That's all you need to know if you're wondering where the producers of this film were aiming, because it's smack-dab in the middle of the 16-25 year-old male demographic, which, as the studio bean-counters tell them, doesn't look for characters or themes, but just a lot of guns and noisy, exploding stuff. The entire setting of Forsythe's novel is discarded in this remake, and except for the enigmatic Jackal, the plot and characters are drastically altered. The American government learns that The Jackal is on a mission and FBI agent Carton Preston (Sidney Poitier) is charged with finding him and bringing him down. That's about as much of Forsythe's story to find here. We are also given two new characters: Richard Gere as imprisoned IRA soldier Declan Mulqueen, who knew The Jackal once upon a time, and Russian intelligence agent Valentina Koslova (Diane Venora). Preston decides Mulqueen will need to be released from jail in order to help him track the dangerous killer, and the last time I saw that happening Nick Nolte was telling Eddie Murphy that a "Zagnut" bar was his goddam dinner.

Amazon.com: Customer Reviews: The Day of the Jackal The Day of the Jackal 4.7 out of 5 stars 471 Price:$10.19+ Free shipping with Amazon Prime Your rating( Clear )Rate this item 220 people found this helpful 5.0 out of 5 starsWhy can't they make movies like this any more? ByDavid J. Chmielon December 7, 2003 Rarely does a movie do justice to a book, but Fred Zinneman's production of "The Day of the Jackal" is wonderful adaptation of Frederick Forsyth's novel which, I continue to believe, is one of the greatest thrillers ever written. It's hard to put a finger on what exactly makes this film great: excellent performances by relatively unknown actors, a wonderful plot, fantastic location shooting or a complete desire to avoid the bells and whistles, special effects laden movies that are all that makes up the "suspense" genre of films these days.

Like other reviewers have said, be this the first or the fiftieth time that you watch this film, you will be left on the edge of your seat with its "cat and mouse" plot of the search for a lone assassin hired to murder President De Gaulle. The young Edward Fox is brilliant in the title role and the supporting cast excellent. If anything, this film proves that you do not need big named stars, explosions around every corner or computer generated effects to make a fantastic film. The only downside to watching this film is that you realise that the movie industry just does not make films like this any more. Highly, highly recommended. 18 people found this helpful 1.0 out of 5 starsUNIVERSAL CUT IT TO BLAZES TO FIT IT ON ONE DVD ByMr. Ian D. MacDougallon March 14, 2013 Having seen the original film and thought it brilliant, I bought the DVD version. The original film was a full night's entertainment at the movies, and was shown in two parts with an interval between them. But in the much abridged DVD version, many important scenes have either been left out entirely, or have been so cut as to be meaningless.

For example, the scene in the hotel when the Jackal, on his way to his first meeting with the OAS conspirators, tumbles to the presence of their "gorilla" behind a curtin in the lobby, goes straight back out and phones them, telling them to get rid of the Gorilla immediately. Important character development: cut right out. And so on, and so on. I got one DVD and feel cheated. I would have preferred to pay whatever (cost to Universal < A$0.50 ) for the extra DVD and got the whole thing. I would be ashamed to play this disappointing cut down UNIVERSAL PICTURES (UK) DVD to any of my friends. Could serve as a coaster under a beer glass, perhaps. Format: DVD | Verified Purchase This is by far the best spy thriller I have ever seen. Not a thing is out of place here. The attention to details is just amazing. Acting is very good, plot is excellent, and directing is great. It is amazing how dedicated and professional both Lebel and the Jackal are. One is the bad guy, and the other is the good guy, and yet you cannot help but have respect for both of them.

No bells and whistles here, just pure storytelling at its best. 0Comment | 11 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Report abuse Comment Paste the product's web address below: Product not found. Only products offered on Amazon can be linked. Select What's this? What are product links? In the text of your review, you can link directly to any product offered on Amazon.com. To insert a product link, follow these steps: 1. Find the product you want to reference on Amazon.com 2. Copy the web address of the product 3. Click Insert product link 4. Paste the web address in the box 5. Click Select 6. Selecting the item displayed will insert text that looks like this: [[ASIN:014312854XHamlet (The Pelican Shakespeare)]] 7. When your review is displayed on Amazon.com, this text will be transformed into a hyperlink, like so: Hamlet (The Pelican Shakespeare) You are limited to 10 product links in your review, and your link text may not be longer than 256 characters.

Please write at least one word You must purchase at least one item from Amazon to post a comment A problem occurred while submitting your comment. Please try again later. Showing 0 of 0 comments Sort by: Format: Amazon Video | Verified Purchase From the bestselling book. Anyone interested in the history of post war France wrapped up in a nail biter, would appreciate the accuracy of this film. Add to that the directing, acting, and casting, results in a top notch piece of work. Speaking of casting, relative unknown actors were used on purpose, and it worked beautifully. The only problem the producers of "The Jackal" had, in my view, is that they competed with classics also released in 1973, such as "The Sting" and "American Graffiti," among others. For this reason, "Jackal" is not as well known. Nevertheless, it is among my own top ten movies. Highly recommended. Betcha couldn't tell. Get this movie, and watch it several times so you can grab the little details and nuances. You won't regret it. 0Comment | One person found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?

Yes No Report abuse Comment Format: DVD | Verified Purchase "The Day of the Jackal" (1973) is a parallel procedural in which we follow an assassin and his police pursuers through all sorts of moves and counter-moves. President Charles De Gaulle gave independence to Algeria from France, and a group of retired army officers (the OAS) vowed to kill him. After a failed attack on his limousine, the plotters hire a British contract killer, a superb marksman, code named Jackal, brilliantly played by Edward Fox. He is a meticulous and clever planner, a tactician, who hires a forger to fake documents and an armorer to design a special sniper rifle that can be assembled from small sections and easily concealed. (Watch for what Fox does to a watermelon.) All the steps of his preparation for his assassination are documented, using guile and disguises, and along the way he has to dispatch people who get in his way. The French investigation unit led by the unassuming but sharp-witted plodder Lebel (Michael Lonsdale) enlist the aid of Scotland Yard to track down the identity of the Jackal.

Lebel's assistant is Caron (Derek Jacobi) who resembles Fox. Suspense is built up as the Jackal barely manages to stay one step ahead of the cops. He's a flashy dresser and sports an ascot. There's a James Bond quality to him. It's a movie that engrosses the viewer, with a clever, complex plot, well acted, and beautifully photographed with great shots of European sites. The preparations and parading on French Liberation Day around the Arch of Triumph intensify the suspense build-up. 0Comment | 5 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Report abuse Comment Format: DVD | Verified Purchase Based on Frederic Forsyth's bestselling novel, this is one of those rare films that does justice to the book. A dissident group within the French Army hire a professional killer to assasinate Charles DeGaulle. The French police and French intelligence are mobilised, but there's one problem, they have no idea who the hitman is or what he looks like. The film is nicely paced and, while it's not laden with special effects, it has no trouble holding your attention.

It's a tribute to Forsyth, the screenplay, and the director that, even though you know that DeGaulle was never assasinated, the suspense continues to build throughout the film right up to the end. The picture and sound are only average at best, but the film rates highly enough that any flaws in this 30 year movie can be easily forgiven. Highly recommended!! Just the right combination of suspense and action combined with an intelligent screenplay. Too rarely seen these days. 0Comment | 5 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Report abuse Comment Format: Amazon Video | Verified Purchase I remember reading Frederick Forsyth's masterful thriller "The Day of the Jackal" way back in the 1970s, when I was still in college. Unfortunately, I never got to see the movie that was made from the book... ...Until last weekend, that is, when I discovered "The Day of the Jackal" on Amazon Video. I quickly purchased it, adding it to my video library. The film version of "The Day of the Jackal" is every bit as good as the book it's based on.

The movie's plot is pretty straightforward: during the early 1960s in France, a right-wing domestic paramilitary group, opposed to French President Charles de Gaulle's policies concerning Algeria, has made several unsuccessful attempts to assassinate de Gaulle. The group's leaders decide to hire a foreign contract killer to take on the job of killing the French president. That man turns out to be a cold, ruthless, but outwardly suave man known only as "The Jackal." Senior ministers in the French government are made aware of the plot against de Gaulle's life. They assign their best investigator - an assistant police commissioner named Lebel - to find out if the plot is real, who is behind it, and who the assassin is that's supposed to kill the French president. The film shows the parallel courses of action taken by "The Jackal" (played by British character actor Edward Fox) and Commissioner Lebel (played by French actor Michael Lonsdale). Although there isn't a great deal of "shoot 'em up" action in "The Day of the Jackal," the film consistently maintains a high degree of "edge-of-your-seat" suspense throughout its 132-minute running time.

I found myself completely engrossed in the film from its opening to its closing credits. The acting is superb, the screenplay by Kenneth Ross is always taut and tense, and Fred Zinneman's direction is masterful. "The Day of the Jackal" is a political/crime thriller at its very best. Most highly recommended. 0Comment | One person found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Report abuse Comment Format: DVD | Verified Purchase This is an absolutely superior work of cinema that was foolishly judged to be eligible for a remake, horribly done, with Bruce Willis (no joke). Accept nothing but the original! One of the very few "mysteries" that can be watched again and again, without feeling disappointed at knowing the ending. Edward Fox is chillingly original as a killer with charm and ice water in the veins, the detective tracking him is the classic plodder with an almost sixth sense about the killer, and all of the surrounding characters are interesting, intriguing and imperative to the unfolding story. Not fully appreciated in its initial theatrical release, it's become a classic -- virtually impossible to find on DVD shelves in even the most well-stocked stores. 0Comment | 3 people found this helpful.

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Report abuse Comment Format: Amazon Video | Verified Purchase Many have written insightful reviews praising this now historic movie for excellence in many areas of film. I agree it is a Beautifully photographed, detailed and sweeping panorama. It includes a cold, focused, ectomorphic hired killer and people who hire him, help him, protect him, and love him, as well as those who try to stop him. The artful successes of this movie are many and have been reviewed by others. I wanted to point out the brief but carefully crafted performance of Cyril Cusack, who had a long career and in my opinion was always terrific. Cyril Cusack plays a gunsmith paid to produce a custom-made weapon for the assassin. At the very beginning of his scene, as Cusack comes on-camera, he somehow resembles Claude Raines (Casablanca), with all that may bring to mind. I wanted to mention something I noticed--which is that at times the suspense is increased because one character seems to resemble another and we wonder who it is. Two French actresses, neither born in France, both born into families of diplomats, play small but pivotal roles in Day of the Jackal.

Their names are Olga Georges-Picot and Delphine Seyrig. One plays an auburn-haired girl hired by the OAS (Organisation Armee Secrete). Her job as OAS mole is to burrow deeply into the private life of someone currently helping to find the OAS assassin, and to report back any information. This she does. The other, Delphine Seyrig, plays an auburn-haired Frenchwoman, living in a beautiful country home like a chateau, who encounters the assassin by chance. The meeting changes her life, and the life of the assassin. 1973, when this movie was first shown, is approximately the time more explicitness showed up in novels and films, possibly also in song lyrics. Are we better off? Whether the flashes of nudity--the hired assassin's backside lighted to emphasize the musculature--are appropriate for a PG rated movie is a valid question raised in these reviews. Probably this isn't PG at all, given the series of murders the assassin performs to hide his trail. What the nudity may have been intended to show was how vulnerable and very far offtrack the assassin had allowed himself to go.

One could say he lost focus and lost sight of his main objective , Very dangerous results for him... I do think some historical background would be helpful for anyone viewing this film. What was the Organisation Armee Secrete? (OAS). Was deGaulle really a survivor of 30 attempts on his life? What was the Algerian question about? I do feel if the rating is kept at PG, it will require a lot of parental guidance. It's about murder, and paid murder at that. Very sweeping, film, wonderfully pictorial of Parisian landmarks and culture, and also the south of France, a little of Italy. 0Comment | One person found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Report abuse Comment jackal the day of the jackal : definition of jackal the day of the jackal and synonyms of jackal the day of the jackal (English) Assassin The Jackal is a fictional character and the antagonist of the novel The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth , which features a storyline centred on an assassin who is contracted by the OAS French terrorist group of the early 1960s, to kill Charles de Gaulle , the President of France .

The book was published on 7 June 1971, in the year following Charles de Gaulle's death and became an instant bestseller. [1] In the original 1973 film adaptation , he is portrayed by Edward Fox . A revised version of the character was portrayed by Bruce Willis in the 1997 remake , The Jackal , which had little in common with its original. Contents Biographical summary Appearance The Jackal is described as a tall, blonde Englishman in his early thirties. The character's real name is unknown and details of his background are sketchy. Forsyth explains in the novel, "Alexander Duggan who died at the age of two and a half years in 1931... would have been a few months older than the Jackal in July 1963". [2] The character is written as an Englishman living in Mayfair , London . [3] He is described by Frederick Forsyth as six feet tall, with a muscular build and few distinguishing features, one of which comprises his cold grey eyes. In the novel, it is stated he likes to wear striped shirts. [4] During the course of the novel he changes his hair colour frequently.

[5] Abilities and skill To avoid detection the character worked in an office and commuted to work (and despised it). Dreaming of "Cadillacs and Jaguars", he became a mercenary , specialising in individual killings. He uses a numbered Swiss bank account to hold the proceeds of his work. He is a sophisticated man who thoroughly thinks out his plans. No police force in Europe has ever heard of him, implying that he might change his codename for each of his missions. It is also revealed the Jackal is an acquaintance of a former Congo mercenary called 'Louis', whom he met in Katanga and acts as a contact who puts him in touch with a skilled armourer who fabricates the assassin's rifle and a forger who provides false identification papers. The Jackal speaks fluent French and is so skilled in hand-to-hand combat that he can kill with his bare hands. He is skilled with handguns and a marksman with a rifle. In the novel, unlike other first-class assassins, such as German 'Hans-Dieter Kassel' and South African mercenary 'Piet Schuyper', he has managed to remain anonymous except to those select few who recommend him for work.

The character considers his anonymity his main weapon and prefers to use it rather than rely on support. [6] In the novel, the International Police forces hunting him speculate that he may have helped assassinate Rafael Leónidas Trujillo — a real-life person — in the Dominican Republic by shooting the driver of his armoured car, causing it to crash. [7] Prior to being approached by the OAS , the Jackal's only known confirmed kills are of two German rocket scientists in Egypt , who were helping Nasser build rockets to attack Israel . He performed this task at close range using a small-calibre weapon, a crime that left the Egyptian government baffled. The Jackal was paid by a Zionist millionaire in New York, who considered his money "well spent". [8] Main novel plot The Jackal planned to continue as an assassin until he had enough money to retire. The money paid to the Jackal for the Egyptian kill was enough to keep him in luxury for several years, but the offer of US$ 500,000 (about US$ 3.7 million in 2012 dolllar) from the OAS to kill De Gaulle gave him the opportunity to retire early.

Despite his concern over the "security slackness of the OAS", the job is too tempting to turn down. The assassin invents the codename of the Jackal after he is hired by Rodin and his fellow conspirators. The codename seems to stem from the name of the animal , as both the assassin and the animal are predators. When asked for his choice of codename in the novel the Jackal replies: "Since we have been speaking of hunting, what about the Jackal? Will that do?". [9] Taking his usual elaborate precautions, the Jackal arranged a false passport to get him into France and forged identity papers to get him close to De Gaulle. He also stole two passports as contingent identities and bought disguises to match. Unfortunately, France's Action Service was able to kidnap and interrogate an OAS bodyguard, one of the few men who was aware of the plot to kill De Gaulle. Using OAS agent "Valmy" as a cut-out, the Jackal was kept fully informed of the French police's pursuit of him.

This, and his constant changes of identity, enabled him to stay ahead of the police until Liberation Day, 25 August 1963, when the Jackal tried to shoot De Gaulle with a rifle he had disguised as an aluminium crutch. However, De Gaulle moved his head at the last moment, causing the Jackal to miss. As the Jackal prepared for a second shot, he was discovered by French police detective Claude Lebel, who shot him. He was buried two days later in an unmarked grave; only Lebel attended, anonymously. The death certificate identified him as "an unknown foreign tourist, killed in a car accident". The 1973 film For the 1973 adaptation , some of the Jackal's background details are clarified. The dossier the OAS read from states that the Jackal killed Trujillo and the "fellow in the Congo " (presumably Patrice Lumumba ). Identities Unknown: The Jackal's real name is never revealed. Until he chooses his new codename — "Jackal" — he is referred to as "the Englishman". At the end of both the novel and the movie Scotland Yard detectives are still wondering who he was.

One apparent inconsistency in the novel is that when his employers try to call him at his London apartment to warn him his cover is blown — and just miss him — there is no indication that the French Intelligence services make note of the London number and thus have a real lead to the Jackal's identity. However, he could have held the Mayfair flat under an assumed name as well, in which case his anonymity is truly airtight. Unknown: The Jackal signs in at the British Museum using his "habitual false identity". In the film version of this scene, all that is seen of this name is "J". Alexander James Quentin "Alex" Duggan: This is the name of a boy who was born in 1929 but died aged two and a half in a car accident. The Jackal obtains Duggan's birth certificate under false pretences and applies for a passport in this name but with his own photograph and details. In the 1973 film the child's name is changed to Paul Oliver Duggan and his death certificate states that he died of diphtheria .

Per Jensen: A pastor from Copenhagen who bears a resemblance to the Jackal but is older with iron grey hair and metal-rimmed spectacles. The Jackal steals Pastor Jensen's passport from his London hotel room and adopts the disguise after the French police discover his Duggan identity. In the 1973 film, the character's name is Per Lundqvist and he is a schoolteacher; there is no Marty Schulberg character, so it is as Lundqvist that The Jackal pretends to be gay in order to stay at Jules Bernard's flat. Martin "Marty" Schulberg: A student from Syracuse who bears a resemblance to the Jackal but is younger, with chestnut brown hair and heavy-rimmed executive spectacles. The Jackal steals Schulberg's handgrip containing his passport and adopts the disguise when he realises the police must be onto Jensen. In the book, as Schulberg, the Jackal pretends to be gay to slip past French security. Andre Martin: A fictitious French war veteran from Alsace-Lorraine , Martin is in his late 50s and has only one leg, necessitating walking around with an aluminium crutch.

The Jackal becomes Martin — complete with French identity card and mutilé de guerre card courtesy of a Belgian forger — by dyeing his hair grey and cutting it badly, and swallowing a couple of pieces of cordite to make himself sick and affect a pale complexion. Charles Calthrop: Charles Calthrop is the name of a former small-arms salesman who was in the Dominican Republic at the time Rafael Leónidas Trujillo was shot. The SIS later heard a rumor that Calthrop has helped the partisans kill Trujillo by shooting the driver of his armoured car, causing it to crash. In the book, the British police originally think Calthrop is the Jackal's real name, until the real Calthrop shows up at the end, after the Jackal's assassination attempt was thwarted. The authorities were misled by the fact that chacal (i.e., Cha[rles] Cal[throp]) is French for "jackal". When the Jackal learns the French are looking for a Charles Calthrop, he doesn't acknowledge this as his real name.

In the movie, however, the OAS mention that the Jackal killed Trujillo, implying that The Jackal may have borrowed Calthrop's identity while in the Caribbean or may just have become mixed up with him. In any event, it is suggested that the British stumbled across the Jackal's false identity of Duggan by blind luck and that the Jackal may not even have been an Englishman. The real life Jackal Real-life terrorist Ilich Ramirez Sanchez was given his nickname, Carlos the Jackal, based on this book. Already dubbed Carlos, when police raided one of his safehouses, they found a copy of The Day of the Jackal (actually it belonged to a friend) and a British journalist decided to dub him Carlos the Jackal. Apparently Sanchez despised the nickname, especially because it implied he was a mercenary like the Jackal rather than a revolutionary , which was how he saw himself. Film portrayals The book was quickly adapted into the 1973 movie The Day of the Jackal with Edward Fox in the title role. Though initially a box office failure , it garnered mostly positive reviews and is today widely popular with critics.

In the 1997 film remake The Jackal , the Jackal was played by Bruce Willis . In the remake, he is hired by an Azerbaijani mobster to assassinate the First Lady of the United States , and is pursued by the FBI and a former IRA sniper with a vendetta against him. This version of the character is substantially different from that featured in the novel and the 1973 film; in this film, he is portrayed as a sociopath , and it is implied that he takes pleasure in killing. References ^ Forsyth 1971, pp. 282, 310. ^ Forsyth 1971, pp. 49, 56. ^ Forsyth 1971, pp. 259-260. The Jackal takes aim | Far Flungers | Roger Ebert The Jackal takes aim Tweet Fred Zinnemann's " The Day of the Jackal " (1973) is a great example of how a film can do a good job of creating tension and involving the viewer by sticking with the most basic cinematic elements.

We have the benefit of comparing it with a remake ("Jackal," 1997) that went on the opposite direction and by wrongly doing everything that its predecessor got right, making he merits of the earlier version all the more evident. Both are distinctive reflections of how studios perceived audience tastes in their respective time periods. They are as different as two movies based on the same source might be and can hardly be classified in the same genre. The later entry is a brainless action flick; the original is a "thriller" in every sense of the word. " The Day of the Jackal " was based on the novel by Frederick Forsyth and it is set in France in the early 1960s, a time of turmoil when President De Gaulle granted Algiers its independence, generating a feeling of resentment from ex-military extremists who considered this as treason to their fallen comrades defending the French rule there. The OAS (as the group called itself) plots a failed assassination attempt against the President and their top leaders are tried and executed.

Their remaining comrades concoct their revenge by hiring a contract killer (who has some successful hits in his dossier) for a well paid job that would force its executioner into early retirement, the kind that would require months of preparations for a single shot at one of the world's most notorious figures, on what's to become the day of the Jackal (the assassin's code name). Much as with " Bonnie and Clyde " or " Apollo 13 ," "Day" is the kind of experience where most audience members enter the theater well aware of the real life case's outcome but this knowledge doesn't take away the excitement of the experience. The film's biggest virtue is making us feel like we're watching a real event developing--and the lack of big name stars helps in creating this illusion. According to the IMDB Zinnemann eventually regretted casting his villain on the basis of being "anonymous and indistinct" as he later realized this factor likely ended up hurting its box office performance, but using a renowned actor of the time such as a Roger Moore or a Michael Caine would have made for an altogether different kind of movie, more in tune with the dreadful remake.

Edward Fox's Jackal is an enigmatic presence; he appears in most of the picture but has relatively little dialogue and the viewer hardly gets to know him. He only seems to kill when he deems it absolutely necessary, and Zinnemann avoids providing any gratuitous shocks by keeping his crimes mostly off screen. As a result, there's an aura of mystery about him, even more so (not a spoiler) at the very end when we learn he may not have even been the person we thought, all along. This is something that obviously would have never worked with a better known star in the role. This Jackal is clearly an amoral and cruel man but there's not much more to say about him. Does he get involved with Madame Montepelier ( Delphine Seyrig ) solely for the purpose of being able to stay in a place where the police won't be looking for him? Does the same apply to his visit to the Turkish baths in Paris where he knows he will get picked upon for sure? The answer in both cases is a likely "yes," as the main focus of this calculating man was to do things strictly in the way that best served his final goal.

"Jackal" basically did most of same things than its predecessor but it sensationalized the details, and its evil-doer acted in a flashier fashion. Take, for example, the way in which the Bruce Willis character deals with his weapon supplier, a scene that only seems to exist so that the audience will get to see him trying out "the big gun" (discretion doesn't seem to be an important factor in this Jackal's particular mission). Its resolution has the usual chases and plot twist that today's "thrillers" can't seem to do without; it is big and loud and wraps things up conveniently without making the viewer think too much. Overall, the remake can best be described as a cold-hearted artifact for supplying easy shocks. A closer match for " The Day of the Jackal " is Wolfgang Petersen's " In The Line Of Fire " (1993) which shared several of the same elements but based its premise on the duel of two strong personalities (played by Clint Eastwood and John Malkovich ), another thing the "Day" remake failed at badly. "Fire" was more of a Hollywood product and better suited for the casting of big name stars, even if at the cost of a little believability.

Both entries paid equal attention to the small details that an assassin has to come up with in order to stay one step ahead of his pursuers and allowed audiences to grasp the numerous preparations for a killing of this nature. In "Day," we follow Fox as he comes up with fake names, steals passports for his own use, designs customized rifles, trades license plates with unsuspecting victims and so on. The perspective on the investigators doesn't ring quite as true as they tend to get a little too lucky in guessing right at every turn in order to save the day, but this is a minor quibble. When discussing " The Day of the Jackal " with of a friend years ago, he dismissed the movie as "two hours wasted on the preparation of an assassination attempt that ends up failing anyway." As simplistic as this conclusion may sound, the point is hard to argue.

Considering that the villain represented the audience's POV for most of the picture, that there's no other character we can really identify with (the heroes here aren't particularly appealing), and that the assassination plot is so elaborate and well devised, as strange as this may sound, there is a distinct possibility that some audience members may end up hoping for the Jackal to succeed in his quest and when he doesn't, they'll probably felt they didn't get their money's worth. The irony in "Day's" outcome derives from the fact that, except for a couple of witnesses, few people even learned how close this French president came to meeting his untimely end (though it's hard to believe that those in the street didn't hear the sounds of all that machine gun firing). Consequently, there wasn't closure for the audience. " In The Line Of Fire " allowed for us to sympathize with its disturbed killer but drew a clear line between the characters on the side of righteousness and those who were not. In contrast, only viewers with an awareness of history will be able to discern whether the French nationalists in "Day" had a right to feel betrayed and act as they did. I don't think this takes anything away from Zinnemann's film.

Both cases mentioned here had very different inspirations and their respective resolutions managed to generate extraordinary levels of suspense. They represent equally valid approaches to similar subject matter. " The Day of the Jackal " was shot in a rather modest fashion on several European locations. It does show its age in several instances, but holds up pretty well to this day. The few technical challenges that the story demanded, such as the effect of the failed murderous bullet, were dealt with utter simplicity; in lieu of CGI, the problem seems to have been solved with a simple case of animation that surprisingly isn't all that easy to distinguish. "Day" doesn't really have any flashy elements or action scenes; there's not much of a musical score to accentuate the mood and not a drop of blood is shown onscreen. It is slowly paced but never boring. Its worthiness derives from slowly involving the audience while generating a sense of anticipation. It has the ability to make you wonder whether something you know didn't happen might end up occurring anyway.

THE JACKAL HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE OUR TAKE: 8 out of 10 This is a loosely based remake of the 1973 film, "The Day of the Jackal" (directed by Academy Award winning director Fred Zinnemann). In that film, relatively unknown actors filled a story in which an assassin is after French President Charles de Gaulle. This version is helmed by Michael Caton-Jones ("Rob Roy" "Doc Hollywood"), who went after some big stars for his remake, and the casting is superb. That word nearly sums up the movie experience as a whole, for despite some logic problems and errors, this comes off as a smart, political thriller that's designed as much for a thinking person's pleasure, as that of an action and suspense fan. In yet another case of a big star sharpening his teeth in the role of the villain, Bruce Willis ("Die Hard" "Pulp Fiction") perfectly plays the cold, calculating assassin. Donning enough realistic disguises for several movies, Willis sheds his normal wise-guy attitude in favor of a low-keyed performance, and the results are favorable.

Talented actress Diane Venora is quite good in her role as the battle-tested Russian officer, and she brings a certain humanity to the film that is noticed more as we warm up to her character. It's also quite enjoyable to see the great Sidney Poitier back on the big screen. While his role is pretty much standard fare -- a typical determined F.B.I. official -- Poitier brings some class to that role and is quite believable. The same can be said for Richard Gere's performance. This actor often does better in roles where he's not the knight in shining armor, but instead has a few nicks and dents in his shield. Here he plays a villain himself, but one that is slowly allowed to transform into the movie's hero. What gives his character depth is that he's not the perfect hero -- he has a shadowy past -- and that makes him that much more interesting. Gere has always been much better at playing such characters (much like he was in the non-hero role in "Internal Affairs") and this role gives him the opportunity to really get into his performance. What was most surprising about this was Gere's Irish accent.

While it sounded relatively good, it took me a long time to accept it since -- well, since Richard Gere always sounds like Richard Gere. For the believability to finally sink in is a testament to Gere's performance and the ability of the film to sweep us away into its story. Caton-Jones, working from screenwriter Chuck Pfarrer's script, applies a nice overall touch to the film, knowing just when to let loose with the action or tie up what initially appeared to be seemingly loose ends into a continually tightening knot. The story's pacing is good and it picks up in direct relation to the "good guys" closing in on the assassin. We've always enjoyed -- and certainly appreciated -- films that are good enough to draw you into the story and make you forget about everything else. This is one of those films -- at least until the end draws near where some bad visual shooting effects and logical plot problems jar us from that ride. A horrendously done matte shot (where they superimpose actors in a studio onto a scene shot elsewhere) involving Gere on a rooftop is the most glaring.

While such shots used to be done -- and accepted -- all of the time, nowadays, they look incredibly fake and this is a perfect example of how not to do it. For not only does it look bad, but it also distracts the audience and yanks us out of the story. Then there are the logic problems. In a shootout between The Jackal and Koslova, he fails to hit her -- from a rather close range -- which seems surprising since he's a professional assassin and we expect more proficiency from him. There's also the question of how the Jackal removes his large caliber gun from a yacht after Koslova and Declan chase him from it. Wouldn't the police have searched it? And it's doubtful he could have moved it from the yacht to his van in the allotted time period, especially without anyone seeing him do so at a crowded marina festival. The ending also has problems where Declan -- not dressed in any outfit the Secret Service would recognize -- is on a rooftop holding a sniper rifle very close to important government officials, and nothing happens to him. In addition, a long standoff scene in a subway station has the standard good guy, bad guy showdown, but no police ever arrive.

Nor do any passengers or subway cars for that matter, and a hostage, once let go, "runs" away very slowly -- an act that elicited a great amount of verbal disbelief from our audience. Of course these are somewhat minor points, and many of them can be -- and are -- overlooked in the "heat" of the scene. They certainly work dramatically, yet they give the film a bit of a sloppy feel. That's too bad for they're problems that could easily have been fixed and they bring down the overall quality of the film from a terrific rating to somewhere in the quite good range. Still, for the most part, "The Jackal" is quite a fun thrill ride, and the performances are its highlights. If you like intelligent action thrillers, you probably won't go wrong with this feature. We give it an 8 out of 10. OUR WORD TO PARENTS: Violence and profanity highlight the objectionable material in this film. As the main character is an assassin, many people are killed throughout the film (in a cold, callous fashion), and the results are quite bloody. Obviously the main character and others have bad attitudes.

Parents may be concerned that Bruce Willis (who usually plays the "good guy" in films) is the professional killer and that the film's "hero" (played by Richard Gere) is a former I.R.A. sharpshooter. Profanity is extreme with nearly 20 "f" words, and there are many tense and suspenseful scenes that mainly occur in the second half of the film. While few preteens will want to see this movie, many teenagers just might. Thus, you should read through the material to determine whether this movie is appropriate for them, or for anyone else in your family. Our Take On: "The Day of the Jackal" Our Take On: "The Day of the Jackal" March 2, 2016 JBF members “leaped” into action Monday night to see the action-filled movie The Day of the Jackal, the second film in our “3rd Generation: from Book-to-Film-to-Remake” series. Once again, we saw the original film, which had a far better reception among reviewers (such as Roger Ebert; see links below).

This movie was an early adapter of the suspense built by using a semi-documentary style to illustrate the cat and mouse game “the Jackal” is playing with the French police. We all admired how Edward Fox played the lead role of “the Jackal”. He was center-stage for literally the whole of the movie, and he was fascinating to watch. His complete lack of a moral center was chilling, and his planning showed intelligence and cunning. As his counterpart, we also really enjoyed the performance by Michael Lonsdale as Inspector Lebel. His unflappable, calm, demeanor belied his intense and scrupulous attention to any detail that might help them catch the Jackal before he can assassinate President Charles de Gaulle. It was also fun to see a young Derek Jacobi acting as his right-hand man in this investigation. Information on the book and its author, Frederick Forsyth, was shared prior to the movie. A highly interesting character himself, “The Day of the Jackal” was his first novel. An author, journalist, spy and the youngest pilot in the RAF, he wrote his novel the old-fashioned way – on a typewriter.

He supported a motion to impeach British Prime Minister Tony Blair after the war "Operation Iraqi Freedom" and was awarded the CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in 1997. His early career was spent covering French affairs and the attempted assassination of Charles de Gaulle. In 1969 he decided to use his experience as a Reuter’s reporter in France as the basis for a thriller. Within 35 day he'd completed The Day of the Jackal, which established him as one of the world's leading thriller writers. In 1972, it won the Edgar Allan Poe award for Best Novel, from the Mystery Writers of America. -- And by strange coincidence, (influenced by Just Between Frames perhaps?!) he's up for another Edgar award this year in the category of Best Critical/Biographical for: The Outsider - My Life in Intrigue by Frederick Forsyth -- which we have here at Lisle Library!! Click here to go to our catalog and reserve it for yourself!

Undoubtedly an outspoken individual, we all chuckled over the following quote from him on IMDb: “I have yet to be convinced that the film business is a profession for adults.” We speculated on what he’d think of a film club discussing this film, and decided that the film group was definitely suitable for adults – whatever Mr. Forsyth might say! Click on the titles here, to go to links to Roger Ebert’s reviews of The Day of the Jackal and its (loose) remake: The Jackal with Bruce Willis and Richard Gere. Click here to go to IMDb's listing for The Day of the Jackal's cast, etc. Click here to to to IMDb's listing for The Jackal (the remake) Share this:

Question: Who played the title role in the 1997 film "The Jackal" a remake of "The Day of the Jackal?
Answer: Bruce Willis